[corvus corax]

Like Button said my driver of the day is Checo Perez. Brilliant defence he put against Hamilton today. That should keep the mouth of his detractors shut for a while. Hope he continues to drive with the same spirit rest of this season and beyond.

[iamahunter]

Red Bull finds more speed on the straights for final GPs!

Red Bull Racing has solved a major problem and is likely to gain a lot of speed for the final GPs. The DRS on the rear wing will open on time again, increasing the speed over the entire DRS zone.

Source

Finally something from the RB!!

Its going to be a fight till the end!

[smartindboy]

While I'd like to see Max winning this for a change, I still feel it is Lewis title to lose.

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by iamahunter

Source

Finally something from the RB!!

Its going to be a fight till the end!

Much needed against the Torpedo Brazil PU!

I really hope Max wins it for the sake of the sport.

[Cyborg]

I think Hamilton will win, he’s rattled Max’s cage a lot, which shows from Max’s behaviour over the last couple of races. The way Hamilton came back under severe pressure and completely on the back foot are the hallmarks of a true champion, not one who cracks under pressure. I am referring to the weaving down the main straight incident by Max for which he got the black and white flag. Even though Hamilton had a new engine/faster car, heart and fighting sprit are required to do what he did.

We need to really think, this is for people who want Max to win simply to break the monotony of Mercedes winning, which I think is not correct. Why would you want it this way? Wouldn’t it be fair that the person/team who delivers consistently should win. Just because you are bored, you want the other person/team to win. Ridiculous to say the least. For the true Max fans it’s understandable since it’s a matter of heart versus head.

I think Hamilton will win both races if he manages to keep Max from colliding with his car which he appears to want to do since he is up on the points at the moment.

Could be like the 1997 Schumacher versus Villeneuve end to the championship with Max stripped of his points for the year and Hamilton wins due to the unsportsmanlike behaviour, if Max very obviously rams Hamilton that is

Cheers

[am1m]

I haven't been following F1 for the past few years, but from the results it looks like the Red Bull and Mercedes cars are more or less evenly matched. From the news build up of the rivalry it seems like there is very little separating the drivers too (which is very creditable for Max since he's relatively less experienced). In such situations luck and engine/gearbox reliability on the day could play a massive part. I think it'll go down to the wire and a situation like that. To a lesser yet significant extent, experience winning a title fight also plays a part, and there Hamilton has the advantage.

Either way for neutral fans like me (I'm a Tifosi!), I love that it's a very competitive season and hope it goes down to the last race!

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

We need to really think, this is for people who want Max to win simply to break the monotony of Mercedes winning, which I think is not correct. Why would you want it this way? Wouldn’t it be fair that the person/team who delivers consistently should win. Just because you are bored, you want the other person/team to win. Ridiculous to say the least. For the true Max fans it’s understandable since it’s a matter of heart versus head.

I know what you mean, but Lewis has made more mistakes this year than earlier. Take San Marino for one.. as well as messing up a few starts.

It has been far too easy for him since 2014, in terms of pressure. Only 2016, but from a known entity. So he has never had to worry about a faster car from his opponent.

Bottas has gone on record last week saying his car isnt the same as Lewis's on pace.

[iamahunter]

I don't think the so called champ is actually a champ. He's just there with a far superior car. All these years there was absolutely no competition and so the mistakes never mattered much.

This year when there is competition, one can easily see how the so called champ is crumbling under pressure. His mistakes are far serious than his competitor. Given that he's very political in his approach and has played his trump card at the right times doesn't make him any better driver than the pack.

If in a similar car, we have seen his team mate put up better performance than him multiple times, and then only asked to hold back by James or Toto.

So, just to give out a couple of mistakes not expected by a champ of the said calibre:

Verstappen has made a series of small mistakes and is yet to have the perfect weekend. However, he has been able to bounce back from these errors brilliantly.

Meanwhile, Hamilton has had the luck on his side. The Bottas and Russell accident saved his Imola race and Verstappen's tyre blowout meant Verstappen missed out on the chance to extend his lead in the championship by a further 10 points.

Hamilton's errors have had bigger consequences and it's been surprising to see F1's most successful driver make so many mistakes.

The above quote is from this article. Quoted them as my personal opinions matched and they had put it in better words than I could.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by Hatari

I know what you mean, but Lewis has made more mistakes this year than earlier. Take San Marino for one.. as well as messing up a few starts.

It has been far too easy for him since 2014, in terms of pressure. Only 2016, but from a known entity. So he has never had to worry about a faster car from his opponent.

He has made his fair share of mistakes but the worst one, which may be the decisive one for this championship, may be his throwing away that easy win at Baku when he missed his braking point and went straight ahead.

I feel Rosberg won his title especially due to the engine failure at Malaysia if I remember correctly and Hamilton sat on the track clutching his head. That was the knockout punch. Without that engine failure it may have been a different story. But, it is what it is.

Anyways, two races to go, whoever wins I hope it’s clean and on the track. No engine failures, unnecessary collisions or any unsportsmanlike behaviour. Mistakes are fine (in a way), everyone’s human, let the 2021 champion be an honourable one, not a cheater. Can’t wait for 5th December

Cheers

[deetjohn]

It is Hamilton's to lose!

He has put the early odd mistakes behind him and has peaked at the right time.

And more importantly, Merc has found the sweet spot with the car now. Especially with that insane beast mode on the new Power Units.

They have managed to double up the wing, to compensate for that rake angle, but not at the cost of acceleration or top speed. Call it wing stall or double magic mode or what you will. That thing accelerates like the 2019 Ferrari in Europe. A rocket ship literally!

Max has maximized every opportunity this season. But in the world of motorsports, that isn't enough. The machine plays a very important role. and the DNF at both Silverstone and Baku is going to hurt him.

[Hayek]

Well Hamilton needed to win 4 races in a row to win the championship. And he was penalised on a technicality to start last in the sprint in Brazil. And made it to the Top 5, and then won starting 10th. All I can say (despite not being a Hamilton fan) is that the challenge from Verstappen has brought out the best in him. And if he wins the next two races to take the championship, he would be a deserving winner indeed - perhaps more so than in any of his previous titles. Anyway, looking forward to Saudi and Abu Dhabi.

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

He has made his fair share of mistakes but the worst one, which may be the decisive one for this championship, may be his throwing away that easy win at Baku when he missed his braking point and went straight ahead.

I feel Rosberg won his title especially due to the engine failure at Malaysia if I remember correctly and Hamilton sat on the track clutching his head. That was the knockout punch. Without that engine failure it may have been a different story. But, it is what it is.

Anyways, two races to go, whoever wins I hope it’s clean and on the track. No engine failures, unnecessary collisions or any unsportsmanlike behaviour. Mistakes are fine (in a way), everyone’s human, let the 2021 champion be an honourable one, not a cheater. Can’t wait for 5th December

Cheers

How could I forget Baku! Ofcourse.

I just hope the machinery is more or less equal and we see a fight over the last 2 races, not dictated by the Mercedes Brazil torpedo PU (which was the most powerful PU on the entire grid incidentally, not even Bottas had it)

Are you implying Max is a cheater?

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by Hatari

I just hope the machinery is more or less equal and we see a fight over the last 2 races, not dictated by the Mercedes Brazil torpedo PU.

Are you implying Max is a cheater?

Perspective Hatari, perspective (about the new powerful engine). I would take it as a master stroke of management and guts from Wolff/Mercedes. Think about it, they took a chance with the new engine (grid penalty) and came up trumps due to some spectacular driving from Hamilton. Make no mistake his driving was what has set the stage for this championship, not only the car. No Formula 1 great has ever made history without a combination of car plus driver. Put either of these two in a Williams, will either of them win a title? Bottas is nowhere in contention for anything except the constructors championship which he can deliver with his current power unit.

I feel Bottas is purposely not driving at his full potential to help Hamilton and the team. Where he can he makes kindergarten mistakes, keeping the door wide open on the left for Max at the start of the race for one. Messing up his starts so he falls far behind and generally out of contention to help. Done in an intelligent manner to not make things very obvious, but done nonetheless.

Cheater is a term I would use for Max, simply because of his weaving down the straight and getting a black and white flag. It was a tactic employed by a loser not a lion, when push comes to shove. He knew Hamilton would have taken him on the straight so he made a conscious decision to weave, it was not done in the heat of the moment either. He knows the rules, it’s pretty obvious what he did and when the team informed him about it, his reaction was “tell them I said hi” which is ridiculous. I feel for this kind of dangerous driving Formula 1 should have much stricter penalties as the outcome could be disastrous.

One person wins and the other loses, but this kind of thing is what separates the men from the boys, if you know what I mean and completely unacceptable by any moral yardstick.

Cheers

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Cheater is a term I would use for Max, simply because of his weaving down the straight and getting a black and white flag. It was a tactic employed by a loser not a lion, when push comes to shove. He knew Hamilton would have taken him on the straight so he made a conscious decision to weave, it was not done in the heat of the moment either. He knows the rules, it’s pretty obvious what he did and when the team informed him about it, his reaction was “tell them I said hi” which is ridiculous. I feel for this kind of dangerous driving Formula 1 should have much stricter penalties as the outcome could be disastrous.

Strong words that.
I would categorize Max as young and stupid for the weaving.

But going by your definition, what does that make Shumi for his antics against Hill/Villenueve/Monaco?

And what about when he almost put Barrichello into the wall at Hungary 2010.. your categorisation would equate it to attempted murder I presume.

[AlphaKilo]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

...

I feel Bottas is purposely not driving at his full potential to help Hamilton and the team. Where he can he makes kindergarten mistakes, keeping the door wide open on the left for Max at the start of the race for one. Messing up his starts so he falls far behind and generally out of contention to help. Done in an intelligent manner to not make things very obvious, but done nonetheless.

Cheater is a term I would use for Max...

Bottas not driving to his full potential --> Wouldn't this spoil his chances of getting a contract next year with more drivers (younger ones) waiting to take his place! Also, "taking himself out of contention to help and trying to help hamilton" seems contradicting to me! Either he is fighting like Checo does and keeps Verstappen at bay and shield hamilton or he stays away from the fight to make a point to the team and pressure them to respect him.

"Cheater" nah! Young and stupid --> I agree. The team playing dirty tactics, yes of course --> proof: They asked alpha Tauri to give way, when Verstappen reported "he's kind of stuck" at about 3rd/4th lap of Qatar GP.

Also, I am tired of constant whining from Redbull on the wing design of Merc or other complaints they are raising to put brakes on merc. They are not fighting it fair and square on the track, if we watched the "drive to survive", Christian Horner clearly and openly states that they will do "everything" to fight merc because they know they cannot beat them on the track.

Off late, I feel like watching WWF/WWE when I see F1!